Have you ever noticed that certain music can make you feel a very specific way? Music is very powerful stuff. It can uplift and depress, agitate and calm. It can offer relief and comfort. Let’s examine this idea a little further. How Music Conveys Emotion Even though there are countless works of music in the world […]
Read More
Welcome to the second installment of Music Favorites. Check out part 1 here! It’s so hard for me to pick a favorite piece of music. It’s like asking a mom to pick her favorite child or a movie fanatic to pick his favorite film. But I have compiled a list of my favorite works to share, […]
Read More
These last few months have been a little crazy and stressful. Okay, a lot crazy and stressful. I decided to take a little break today and listen to some music that I like, so I thought I’d share some of those pieces with you. Prelude in B minor by Rachmaninoff First up: Prelude in B minor […]
Read More
Background When we say Baroque music, we typically think of composers like Bach and Handel. These composers – and this musical era in general – were vital in shaping music as we know it today. Beginning around 1600, the Baroque era was instrumental (pun definitely intended) in the normalization of tonality (harmony as we know […]
Read More
The violin is a string instrument widely used since its development in 16th century Italy. From that point on, composers have written incredible music for this instrument in solo and group form. Let’s explore some of that music in today’s post. Bach Violin Partita No. 2 in D minor In 1720, Johann Sebasian Bach composed […]
Read More
In 2013, composer John Luther Adams premiered his contemporary orchestral work Become Ocean. The piece won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Music and a Grammy in 2015 for Best Classical Contemporary Composition. Become Ocean was inspired by the oceans in the Pacific Northwest (particularly that of Alaska, where Adams lived for much of his life). The name was […]
Read More
Learn about the life and music of composer Ludwig van Beethoven.
Read More
Learn about the life and music of composer Sergei Prokofiev.
Read More
Before we jump into this blog post, let’s listen to the focus piece first. Because it is so beautiful. Background Maurice Ravel was a French composer who lived from 1875-1937. He is best known for composing in the style of French Impressionism (a musical movement focused on creating an atmosphere and describing moods and emotions in […]
Read More
Sometimes the term “classical music” elicits groans. Thoughts of long, boring concerts full of long, boring music tend to scare listeners away from the seemingly outdated instrumental medium. And then there’s the daunting (yet maybe stereotypical?) image of the concert hall: the formal orchestra and an auditorium full of the cultured and well-dressed who attend so they can listen to serious and […]
Read More